This invention relates generally to tree-baling apparatus and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for baling a tree while it is still standing.
Tree baling is the process of bundling the extended branches of a tree tightly to its trunk to compress the tree's girth. The branches are pressed inward until they are roughly parallel to the trunk and then baling twine is wrapped around them to hold them in place. Baling is common in the Christmas tree and tree nursery industries, where trees are shipped for replanting with their branches and leaves still attached. It permits the trees to be packed more densely for shipping and facilitates their handling. Baled trees are also less likely to be damaged in transit because their branches are bundled together. Trees shipped with their branches extended, by contrast, are easily damaged because the branches intertwine with those of other trees, scraping the bark from the tree and knocking off leaves and needles.
The conventional method for baling Christmas trees is to fell them, haul them to a baler, and then bale them. The baler usually comprises a horizontally mounted variable-diameter cone or funnel. The tree is inserted into the cone with its lower trunk, or handle, first. A cable extending through the cone is then attached to the handle and actuated to pull the tree through the cone. As the tree passes through, the cone contracts around the trunk to bend the branches inward to the trunk. A mechanism associated with the cone wraps twine around the pressed branches to bundle them to the trunk.
Balers using this method are presently available from a number of sources. Manufacturers include the Howey Tree Baler Corporation of Merritt, Mich., Wall-Dell Products, and Northstar Evergreens, Inc., of Park Rapids, Minn. Although balers differ somewhat in design and operation, generally the method they employ is the same. The tree is first cut, then hauled to the baler, and loaded handle first into the cone. The tree is then pulled through the cone to press the branches inward to the trunk as baling twine is wrapped around the branches.
This method suffers from a number of disadvantages. Its primary drawback is that it cannot bale trees in their natural standing state, i.e., in situ. Nursery stock or trees intended for replanting, for example, cannot be cut and hauled through a horizontal baler. Instead, they must be manually baled, a more time-consuming process. Even for Christmas trees that are cut, the trees must be baled within several weeks of Christmas because cut trees will hold their needles only for a short time. Concentrating the baling in such a brief span requires more equipment and manpower than if the trees could be baled over a longer period. The result is increased costs of production.
Another drawback of this method is the time and labor it requires to cut and bale the trees and the damage to the trees in the process. Cutting a tree that has its branches fully extended requires considerable effort. Each cut tree must then be hauled through the tree stand to the baler, which because of its size cannot be easily moved between the rows of trees. In the process of hauling the trees, they are often dragged through the mud or over other terrain that can break limbs and brush off needles. The despoiled trees that result are worth much less.
Accordingly, a need remains for an improved tree baling method and apparatus that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art.